Domestic oven



Jan; 9,1 R. F. DAVIS 8 DOMESTIC OVEN Filed Aug. 4. 1937 Patented Jan. 9,1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

2 Claims.

This invention relates to domestic cooking stoves and analogous devicesand more particularly to a safety device for preventing the occurrenceof accidental burns to persons using the .5 ovens thereof.

It has been noted by the present inventor that the average housewifereceives rather frequent burns upon her forearms by reason of the factthat in reaching into a hot stove oven the forearm is inadvertentlytouched against the forward edge of one of the oven shelves.

According to the present invention these burns may be prevented byplacing along the forward edge of each of the oven shelves a strip ofnoninflammable material of a kind that will not transfer heat to otherobjects rapidly even though the temperature of the material itself berelatively high. Asbestos is such a material, particularly in its moreporous forms, for example asbestos cloth or loosely felted asbestossheet.

Cementitious compositions having these properties may also be made, forexample, by mixing asbestos or kieselguhr or the like with sufiicientPortland cement or plaster of Paris, silicate of soda or the like toharden the product. A person who touches one of these materials when itis at the highest temperature ordinarily encountered in a domestic ovenwill at once be aware of the fact that it is hot, but will have ampleopportunity to break the contact before any P ysical injury issustained. r

The theory of this arrangement is somewhat different from that of theordinary heat'insulating handle, for the reason that in the presentinstance the outer surface of the material itself is heated and theresult that is achieved does not depend upon the fact that the materialwill not conduct heat, but rather upon the fact that it will nottransfer the heat to the skin of the person touching it with sufiicientrapidity to cause 7 a burn before the person can break the contact.Furthermore, the present invention relates to a specific application ofthis principle to domestic cooking ovens and similar structures.

In Fig. 1 of the drawing there is shown a perspective view of a domesticcooking oven with the door open so as to expose the front edge of theshelves in the oven;

Fig. 2 is across section through the front edge of the oven shelfshowing the manner in which the non-heat transferring material isattached;

Fig. 3 is a cross section of another oven shelf showing another methodof attaching the nonheat transferring material; and

Fig. 4' is a cross section of an oven shelf illustrating the use of acementitious coating material as the non-heat transferring material.

Inthe preferred embodiment, as shown by the drawing, the oven II isprovided with a hinged door I! and shelves l3 and I4. Along the frontedge of each of the shelves I3 and I4 a piece of asbestos cloth i5 isattached by a flre- 5 proof adhesive IS, in such a manner that the clothcovers the edge of the shelf and effectively prevents accidental contactwith the shelf itself.

' As shown in Fig. 3, wire staples I! may be used for attaching thenon-heat transferring material 10 instead of adhesives. Still othermeans of attaching may be provided, and any other nonheat transferringmaterial may be used in place of asbestos cloth.

In Fig. 4 is illustrated an embodiment of this invention using a. cementmade by mixing three parts byweight of asbestos shredded rather finelyand one part of Portland cement. Suflicient water is added to react withthe Portland cement and the mixture of cement, asbestos andwater, 20 ismolded into place on the shelf. As illustrated, the shelf l8 carries amolded covering IS on its forward edge.

I claim: 1. A structure of the nature of a domestic oven which includeswithin the oven, where it will be heated to the temperature of theinside of the oven, at least one shelf, the front edge of said shelfbeing covered by a fire-proof material that is characterized by the factthat when it is hot it will not lose its heat rapidly to a colder bodywith which it may be brought into'contact, so that when the oven isheated, and a person accidentally touches the front edge of such shelfthe person will not receive a burn but will be warned 35 by thecomparatively slow transfer of heat to. his person and will be able toremove himself from contact with the shelf before injury occurs.

2. A structure of the nature of a domestic oven will be heated to atemperature sufficient to cause burns when theoven is in operation, saidpart being in such a position that it is likely to be touchedaccidentally by a person using the oven, and said part having theportion which is like- 45 1y to be touched covered with asbestos in sucha manner that the asbestos is also heated to substantially the sametemperatureas the part when the oven is in use. the asbestos functioningso that when a person accidentally touches the 50 covered part he willnot receive a burn but will be warned by the comparatively slow transferof heat to his person and will be able to remove himself from contactwith the covered part before injury occurs. u

ROBERT F. DAVIS.

